A Cure for Wellness is a psychological horror film centered on Lockhart (Dane DeHaan), an up and coming young executive, as he’s sent to a mysterious wellness center in the Swiss Alps by board members to retrieve the CEO, Pembroke (Harry Groener), believed to have “gone off the deep end.” Hoping to bring Pembroke back and save the merger the board members are working toward, Lockhart goes. After encounters with staff and Dr. Heinreich Volmer (Jason Isaacs) at the wellness center, Lockhart has gotten nowhere and decides to come back the next day. On his way out, his car crashes and he’s told his leg broke in the accident. From here, Lockhart learns more and more about the mysterious “cure” the staff seek, while learning more from Hannah (Mia Goth) and other patients along the way.

A Cure for Wellness was directed by Gore Verbinksi and written by Justin Haythe. It’s no stretch to say that A Cure for Wellness struggled in the box office, with its projected gross of $6-8 million in its opening weekend being met by its $4.2 million debut. This failure is likely due in part to the countless negative reviews the film has received, being called “predictable,” “grotesque,” and “unnecessarily long” by critics, who gave it a 41% on Rotten Tomatoes. No doubt the negative buzz the film received from the promotional fake news websites and stories also played into the movie’s downfall.

We went to go see this film and both enjoyed it. Even though the film has received so many negative reviews, the cinematography is incredible. The movie was filmed in several locations in Germany, so the scenery is beautiful. The color palette used throughout the film is stunning as well. Although the plot seemed confusing and overly grotesque at times and surely wasn’t groundbreaking, it was a movie that you needed to go home and research after to completely figure out what happened. We both agree that the movie followed the poor reviews but it was still interesting and we are glad we went to see it.